This invention relates to applying heat shrinkable films to articles such as bottles, other containers and ornamental or novelty items such as Christmas tree ornaments, artificial Easter eggs, etc.
It is known and commonly practiced to apply heat shrinkable films such as labels to the cylindrical portions or bodies of containers by adhering the leading end of a label to the body by means of an adhesive, then wrapping the label around the body of the container and attaching the trailing end by adhesive to the container or lapping it over and attaching it to the leading end of the label. In carrying out this process the upper edge of the label and/or the lower edge of the label is allowed to extend over an inwardly sloping or contoured portion such as the shoulder of a bottle without being attached thereto. Thereafter heat is applied to shrink the unattached edge or edges onto the contoured portions of the container.
This method has been quite successful. However, a problem exists when the surface (or a portion of the surface) to which the label is applied is convex and presents a sector of maximum diameter or circumference with the remainder of the convex surface sloping inwardly toward the axis of the article. Heretofore it has been proposed, as in Spiegel U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,348 to apply a decorative heat shrinkable film to a spheroidal or spherical ornamental article such as a Christmas tree ornament or artificial Easter egg by providing the film in the form of a tube which is oversize in relation to the circumference of the ornament, fitting the tube over the article and then heat shrinking it onto the article.
Another approach to the problem is represented in Inoue""s U.S. Pat. No. 4,225,049, which applies a heat shrinkable film to a container such as the familiar cola bottle, such having a convex portion presenting a sector of maximum diameter and circumference. Inoue, like Spiegel, provides a preformed tube of heat shrinkable film material which, however, is smaller in diameter than the maximum circumference of the container. This tube is stretched and fitted over the container and is released and it is held in place by the elasticity of the film. It is then heated to shrink the entire tube onto the container.
Both such approaches have serious disadvantages such as the necessity to preform the tube in one operation and on one piece of equipment, then remove it and place it over the container or ornament and shrink it onto the container ornament.
It is an object of the present invention to provide improvements upon heat shrink application of segments of heat shrinkable sheets to convex surfaces of articles.
It is a particular object of this invention to provide an apparatus, a system and a method whereby heat shrinkable material may be applied rapidly to, and attached sufficiently for the purpose to a convex sector on an article, and then heated to shrink the remainder of the material properly onto the convex portion and, if desired, onto other parts of the article.
Yet another object is to provide articles so wrapped.
The above and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the ensuing description in the appended claims.
In accordance with the present invention a segment of heat shrinkable film is attached to the widest portion or circumference of a convex surface, then the segment is wrapped around the article and the trailing end is attached to the article or it is lapped over and attached to the leading end of the segment. In this operation as thus far described, only a narrow sector of the film or segment aligned with the sector of maximum circumference of the article is attached to the article and it leaves portions of the segment above and below this narrow sector unattached. Then heat is applied to shrink the entire segment including the unattached upper and lower parts onto the article.